Praycation - DAY TWENTY-FIVE

Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount to consider the lilies of the fields. The lily could have been the scarlet anemone whose lavishness was compared to the robes of Solomon. The lily could have been a generic term for the flowers growing abundantly in the fields. They do not spin or toil but are glorious.

The Bible mentions lilies 15 times with 8 of them occurring in the Song of Solomon. These verses indicate that the lily grows in the fields, the valleys, in gardens and among the thorns. Wherever they are planted, they grow.

When we are considering the lily, consider this: They grow in places where there is a lack of resources for optimal survival. The lily stretches its root system deep into places that is cultivated for her to flourish as well as into places where good soil is hard to find. The lily grows abundantly in broad places with plenty of sunshine to enhance its growth and beauty. It also grows in the shadowy places of a valley where fauna, flora and hillside may block the sun. Yet, the lily grows.

What about you, child of God? We may find ourselves planted in places that do not provide the right amount of nourishment or support. We may find ourselves just like the lily down in the valley of despair, depression, disappointment, disillusion, desperation, and devastation. We may be planted in places that have been cultivated to enhance our gifts and skills. We may also find ourselves in places that hinder our growth because of a lack of resources. Our roots struggle to find what it needs to grow or we are in a place that does not appreciate our beauty – beauty of head, heart and mind. Yet, just like the Lily, we can grow.

Consider the Lily today in prayer no matter where you are planted – in the broad spaces of community and congregational life, in cultivated manicured emotional, socio-economic and physical landscapes or buried in valleys unprotected by policy, praxis or legislation – you can still grow!

Repeat after me: It doesn’t matter where I am now; God is able to prosper me to grow and flourish.

“Consider the Lily of he field, and how they grow;”
Matthew 6:28

Let us pray:
Lord, help me to bloom where I'm planted! In Jesus name, amen.

PRAYCATION 2012 – THE TRANSFORMED LIFE

It’s Saturday! ‘nuf said!
Someone needs to read this message today. Send it to them now. Post this message in your social network system on Facebook, Twitter or Digg. Be sure to share your prayer experiences in the comment section.

Enjoy the day. Be sure to be prayed-up and praised-up before going to worship tomorrow.

Blessings,
VMM

Praycation - DAY TWENTY-FOUR

Good morning to all of the list makers in the world! List makers make lists all the time. They can’t help themselves. Any blank page, paper or surface is in danger of becoming the next list. The lists are everywhere. In the car, on the desk, in their pocket, on a bulletin board or tucked away in their Bible. And, they’d be happy to make a list for you too!

List maker, has this ever happened to you? You make a list, you check it twice and thrice to be sure you have on that list everything you hope to accomplish during the day. You may not get everything done, but at least it is on the list to get done. Somehow after all of your diligent planning and preparation, the infamous list is left at home or heaven forbid it’s lost. You work hard to remember everything you want to get done. At the end of the day, during your evening review you find out that you got everything done except the most important thing.

It is a wise person that sets obtainable goals. It is a wise person who makes plans so as not to waste theirs or anyone else's time or resources. It is a wise person who can anticipate problems and make plans to keep them from becoming crises. It is still a wise person who makes plans and then work the plan. Hug your nearest list maker today!

The writer of Proverbs reminds us today that God is the only one who can make sure that what you plan comes to fruition. Whether you’re a list maker or not today’s Praycation is inviting you to invite God into your goal setting plan making agenda. Prayer is an opportunity to invite God into your plans and be sure that the plans are big enough for God. People plan but God orders our steps!

Beloved pray today before making your plans. Thank God for a new day and a fresh opportunity to plan. Ask God what plans does God have for you, plans not to harm but to prosper you. Ask the Lord for guidance about the things you have on your list. What things must you and only you do. What things should you delegate to others. What things should you delay or put off for another day and where should you push the delete button eliminating that item all together. Got it?  It's either do, delegate, delay or delete.

Submit your day to the Lord. It won’t matter how many lists you make or if you leave that list at home. God knows what you need to get done and will give you the energy to handle it.

"People plan their path, but the Lord secures their steps"

Proverbs 16:9

Let us pray:

Lord, plan my work today and empower me to work the plan you have for me, plans that give me a future and a hope. In Jesus name, amen.

PRAYCATION 2012 –THE TRANSFORMED LIFE

Have a blessed weekend. Be sure that your weekend doesn’t become a “weak end”. Get thyself to a place of corporate worship and worship the Lord in spirit and in truth!

If your group, auxiliary, ministry or church is participating in Praycation let me know in the comment section on this site. If you have designated a special Praycation time for prayer at your church for a week, weekend, or this month, let us know how the Lord blessed.

Remember to encourage yourself and all of the list makers in your life today. Send them this message and don't forget the hug!
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Praycation - DAY TWENTY-THREE

We all have our up and down days. Some days are sweet and others are sour. Sometimes things move quickly alone and other times they get bog down in the quick sand of office politics or ecclesiastical minutia. We set goals and make them. We stare down failure and it withers under our faith. We try to get out of stuff we don’t know how we got into in the first place. And…as my young adults would say “It is what it is, so keep it moving!”

A group of professional fishermen in Luke’s who were having a nonproductive day. They had fished all night and caught nothing. The optimum time for fish catching was past so they washed their nets. Jesus comes along and says try again. This time try at the deep end of the pool.

Try again? We’ve all tasted the waters from that well ever since we heard “If you first you don’t succeed try, try, try again.” You have already done your best. The results were nil. The relationship is over. The class is impossible. Students unruly. Class-size too big. Resources low. Co-workers are incorrigible. The boss is a micromanager. Project didn’t work. The strategy failed. The bank account is empty. The harder you try the less you produce. And all you can say Jesus is try again?

Who wants to face challenges that have already proven to be unworthy? Yet, the disciples did try again. They risked failure, disappointment and embarrassment one more time.

The difference is that Jesus told them to try one more time and where to try. Big fish is found in deep waters, not along the shallow shore. Praycation is a way to draw you into the deep places of God’s heart and Word where the Holy Spirit will open to us profound and prophetic truth.

Today in prayer, ask the Lord to give you the strength to keep trying, and where to try again. When God says so, it is so! .

“Put out into deep water and let down the nets for a catch.”
Luke 5:4

Let us pray:

Lord, empower me to try again and again in the places you want me to try again... today. In Jesus name, amen.

Praycation 2012 - The Transformed Life

Who among us needs to hear the word from Jesus to try again? If it is you, do the steps of Praycation on this message and God's word: Silence, Solitude, Submission, Service and Selah. If it isn't, send this message to someone who needs to hear that they can try again and Jesus will show them where.

Share this message also on your social network sites like Facebook, Twitter or Digg. Subscribe and share your prayer experiences in the comment section.

Schools are opening all over the land. Let's remember to pray for both teachers and students to...try again! Pray prayers of protection over our children, teachers and administrators all year long. Pray also that all will become better partners in preparing the next generation of leaders.

Blessings,

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Praycation - DAY TWENTY-TWO

God has a track record with humanity for doing the miraculous. The seemingly impossible is done. The utterly hopeless situation is turned around. The devastated is restored. The shackled delivered and the diseased healed. Hallelujah!

When we stand before reality and stare into its ugly face we long to hear the stand still and see the salvation of the Lord or the enemy you see today, you will see no more. To be still and allow the Lord to fight for you requires a faith that does not depend upon an outward sign that God is at work on your behalf. This kind of faith doesn’t need to see before it believes. It is a faith that is convinced that God’s promises are genuine and true even before its manifestation.

The Hebrews were between a rock and a hard place newly delivered from a generation of oppression. Their old nemesis changed their minds and pursued them into the desert. The future that seemed so bright a moment ago became tarnished by the reality of Egyptian soldiers and chariots. Faith wavered.

Yet, one among them stood before an impassable sea and heard the voice of the Lord. It was time to move forward. One step of faith into the water led to another. The water divided and a highway opened. The way of victory appeared. The God who got them out of one jam was able to get them out of another. Hallelujah!

Beloved, as you stand today before your own impossible and impassable situations, trust God to open the way for you to move forward. Take those first steps of faith today without a preview of coming attractions. “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” (Exodus 14: 14)

“Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
Exodus 14: 13-14 (NIV)

Let us pray:

Lord, today I stand firm before the impossible and impassable while you create the way  forward , the pathway of victory. In Jesus name, amen.

PRAYCATION 2012 –THE TRANSFORMED LIFE

Beloved, if ever you needed to be still it is now. We are so busy trying to get things done we do not give God enough room to work the impossible and the impassable for us. Walk around in Exodus 14 today. Let God’s Word seep deep into the DNA of your faith until you can stand before the impassable seas of your life and still move forward.

Someone you know needs this message. Share it with them today. Share this message throughout your social network systems and invite others to join the Praycation journey!

Blessings,
VMM

Praycation - DAY TWENY-ONE

In your sanctified imagination, see what it would be like to be following Jesus centuries ago along the dusty roads of Palestine, up the steep inclines to Jerusalem or in the fields while he taught. If you could have ask Jesus one question what would it be? How do you do those miracles? How did you divide the five piece and two fish to feed so many? How were you able to answer your critic’s questions so easily? What was the science behind you walking on water? What button did you push to command the wind and waves? The raising of the dead thing was off the chain Jesus! So, how did you do it?

The Lord’s disciples could have asked him those same questions but they didn’t. They asked Jesus “Teach us to pray”. Jesus pulled together powerfully into one prayer what God desires to do in our lives with the ultimate goal of eternal life and eternity.

Jesus began with to whom our prayer is directed and kingdom concerns. In contract our prayers usually begin with our personal concerns. Lord, bless me and mine. We begin with the issues closest to us and then end with issues facing city, community, country and the world. The Messiah began with the kingdom and then ended with personal concerns of our daily provision, forgiveness and temptations.

Today as we begin the third week of Praycation, pray the prayer the Lord taught His disciples to pray. Pray beginning with kingdom concerns and end with personal interests. Put the things of God ahead of your desires today in prayer. This may be a challenging task for some. Take care of the Lord’s stuff first and the Lord will take care of yours.

“One of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray…”
Luke 11:1

“This then is how you should pray”
Matthew 6: 9

Let us pray:

Lord, thy kingdom come, thy will be done one earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

PRAYCATION 2012: THE TRANSFORMED LIFE

We are three weeks on the journey. My how time flies! It seems like only yesterday when we started out to prayer the steps of Praycation for 31 days and now there is only ten days left.

You can spend a lifetime of prayer and still not know everything there is about prayer. You can read every book, attend every prayer conference, watch every video produced on prayer and still not know everything there is about prayer. I'm still learning. Prayer is praying. Prayer is changing. To pray is to change and those who refuse to change often do not pray. Every moment in prayer is a lesson. Be encouraged to keep launching into the depths of the kingdom in prayer daily!

Share your thoughts and prayer experiences in the comment section. If you have been on the journey or just starting, remember to invite others to join you. Friends have committed to doing Praycation together. Churches have come together to pray together early in the morning or early evening for 7 days and some during the entire month of August. Others are having prayer conference calls reading the daily Praycation lessons and praying together. Others have opened their churches during the lunch hour for anyone to come and pray. Then there are those who have gotten away by themselves..."snatches of solitude" to read the lessons and pray the prayers.

What way have you used the Praycation opportunity?!

Blessings,
VMM

Praycation - DAY NINETEEN

Boundaries in many cases are a fixed limitation or point. It can be a marked area of a playing field in a game or the emotional and physical space we place between ourselves and other people. A boundary makes a clear separation between property such as a borderline, wall or fence.

Boundaries keep in or keep out. They are the demarcation line in relationships including friendships, marriage, career, colleagues and parenting. The overuse of boundaries can inhibit healthy relationships. The lack of boundaries can lead to negative consequences such as abuse.

Take some time today in prayer to consider the healthy and unhealthy boundaries in your life. Are there any walls that need to be erected or torn down? Do you need to say no to someone who is crossing a personal boundary in an inappropriate way and making you feel uncomfortable? Are there any walls that need to come down to let someone in…including God?!

“May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels."
Psalm 122:7(NIV)

Let us pray:

Lord, help me to set appropriate boundaries in my relationship with you and others. In Jesus name, amen.

PRAYCATION 2012 – THE TRANSFORMED LIFE.

Beloved we all want to live in such a way that there is peace within walls appropriately placed. We want boundaries or walls that can enhance our relationships and not restrict them. It’s a subject we do not discuss, consider or pray about often. Let’s see what God has to say to us today in prayer.

Remember to follow the steps of Praycation: Silence, Solitude, Submission, Service and Selah. Details are found in the archives on this site on August 1st.

VMM

Praycation - DAY 17

I love mornings. Its not that I have anything against afternoons, evening or night, it’s just that I love the beginning, the promise of a new day, the prophetic potential of the next 24 hours. What a joy to watch potential shake the darkness from her tresses as possibilities rise above the horizon.  Mornings are a good time to plant your seed as the author of Ecclesiastes suggests in chapter 11 verse 6 – plant your seed in the morning but keep busy the rest of the day because you do not know which effort will profit the most.

Mornings are a time to seek God a quiet start before the intrusion of the challenges of life; mornings, a moment for the Holy Spirit’s “gentle whisper “ to speak to us inexpressible tenderness, power and comfort. My Lord, what a morning…just a moment to renew our minds by the reading of God’s Word and to laugh and dance with God in praise.

Celebrate the morning! The Lord has kept you safe throughout the night and has blessed you with a brand new day. But I have learned something new about the evening.

Many times ancient wisdom gets tossed aside in our post-modern technical global community. If it doesn’t have an on or off switch, can’t be attached to the latest gadget or gismo to enhance our communication capacity or satisfy our insatiable thirst for more and more, than its kicked to the curb. Gorham D. Abbot wrote in 1833 Rules for Daily Conduct. We are to make God’s Word the rule by which we act. We do all things by the power and strength of Christ and do all to the glory of God. In the evening, review. Love it!

While waiting on sustenance or as you are careening towards sleep do an Evening Review. Set aside a moment in the evening for confession, course correction and counsel. Review the events of the day. Give God the glory and praise for the things that went well and ask God for advise on the things that did not go well. Thank God for whatever grace and mercy showed up on your behalf throughout the day. Thank God for the protection provided you and those you care about. Ask God to help you discern the meaning of the events that took place or the personalities you encountered. Let go of any anger before the sun goes down as the Bible suggests. Confess sins, receive forgiveness and give forgiveness. Desire a fresh anointing. Ask the Lord to help you be realigned to God’s will for your life.

Then…Ask the Lord to grant you rest and not just sleep so that you will be ready to celebrate the morning when it comes.

Today, plant your seed early…your ideas, gifts, talents, treasurer, work, projects, love, care and compassion early…but keep busy because you do not know which act will come to harvest first. Then, this evening get to a quiet place to do your evening review. Write down what you have learned. Let the day go and rest.

“And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at he eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw…”

Genesis 24: 63

Let us pray:

Lord help me start strong, stay strong and end the day strong with an evening review. In Jesus name, Amen.

PRAYCATION 2012 – THE TRANSFORMED LIFE

I love reading your prayer experiences! Thank you for sharing your journey with us. Invite someone else to journey with you today. Share this message on your social network sites and subscribe, it’s free.